Dispensing device for stacked articles



March 5 H. D. GREGORY DISPENSING DEVICE FOR STACKED ARTICLES Filed Aug.17, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet March 5, 1929. GREGORY 1,704,318

DISPENSING DEVICE FOR STACKED ARTICLES Filed Aug. 17, 1925 I5 Sheets-Sheet 2 March 5, 1929. H. D. GREGORY DISPENSING DEVICE FOR STACKED ARTICLES Filed Aug. 17, 1925 I5 Sheets-Sheet VENTUH spread of contagious diseases.

Patented Mar. 5, 1929.

HAROLD D. GREGORY, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCON S1 DISPENSING DEVICE FOR STACKED ARTICLES.

Application filed August 17, 1925. Serial No. 50,819.

This invention relates to improvements in dispensing apparatus of the type in which the articles to be dispensed are stacked in a column and taken from one end thereof, and more particularly to means for increasing the capacity of the apparatus where-- by the same is adapted to dispense a greater number of articles for each filling. thereof.

Apparatus of the character referred to and constructed heretofore comprises, in general, a suitable base for supporting a column of the stacked articles and means associated therewith for taking the articles from one end of the column, the latter in some instances being of the so-called coin-controlled type.- In' this dis ensing apparatus, however, the base is a apted to support only a single column'of the articles, so that in places where the particular articles are in great demand and used daily by many for their convenience and comfort, and in some cases for hygienic reasons, the apparatus is emptied of the single column of articles in a comparatively short period of time. The apparatus, therefore, is either given constant attention and refilled each time the last article in the column-is used, or is left to remain empty for some period of time.

The apparatus or device shown in the drawings as representing one embodiment of the present invention is used fordispensing paper cups of the cone variety. These cups are now in extensive use, and have proven to he of great value in preventing the Considerable effort has been expended in developing apparatus for dispensing these cups and keeping them sterile, but all of these devices, such, for instance, as is shown and described in Patents No. 1,260,432 of March 26. 1918, to Henry Nias and No. 1,081,508 of December 16, 1913, to Lawrence W. Luellen, are adapted to contain and dispense only one column of the cups at a time and therefore require frequent refilling in places where the cups are used constantly and'in. great numbers, such, for instance, as in railroad stations, ofiices and soda fountains. At soda fountains, particularly, it is not always convenient to take the time for refilling the devices. The practice generally followed, therefore, is to place extra columns of the cups on the counter and use them while thus exposed to possible contamination, injury and waste. In lieu of this practice, several of the devices have been set up side by'side, but of course this necessitates the purchase of two or more of the devices and the use of more room.

One of the objects of the present invention, therefore, is to provide improved dispensing apparatus of the character described which is adapted tocontain a plurality of columns of the articles to be dispensed and provided with means for moving the columns into operative position, successively, and, further, to adapt the apparatus for ready attachment to apparatus constructed heret0-' fore and now in extensive use whereby the utility and efficiency of the latter is greatly increased.

Another object is to provide improved dispensing apparatus of the character described which is adapted to contain a plurality of columns ofthe articles to be dispensed and provided with means for automatically moving the columns into operative position, successively. v

Other objects and advantages will hereinafter appear. v

For the purpose of illustrating the'invention, an embodiment thereof is shown in the drawings, in which Figure 1 is a central, vertical section, some of the parts'being broken away;

. Fig. 2 is a fragmentaryfsectional view;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of Fig. 2; Fig. 4. is a perspective view of one of the parts.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view, taken from Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary, perspective View;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary, sectional view, showing a modification;

Fig. Sis a section on line 88 of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a plan view, showing the elements comprising one of the parts arranged in proper relative position to be secured together;

Fig. 10 is a plan view, showing the elements in Fig. 9 secured together; i

Fig. 11 is a perspective View of one of the parts;

Fig. 12 is a front elevation of Fig. 10; FFig. 13 is a section on line 13- 13 of Fig. 14 is a plan view of one of the parts;

' Fig. 14;;

Fig. 15 is a section on line 15-15 of Fig/16 is a fragmentary view, partly in section, showing .a modification;

and 15, a base 1 provided with'anopening 2 is fitted and secured to the upper end of casing 3 of a suitable device 4 adapted to dispense paper cups and preferably of the type'shown and described in the above Patents Nos; 1,081,508 and 1,260,432, the base being provided with a sleeve 5 concentric with opening 2 and fitting snugly into the upper end of casing 3, as shown. Base 1 is provided with a flange 6 at the edge thereof. for receiving one end of a cylindrical glass casing 7 for the columns or stacks of cups and the holder therefor hereinafter" described. Base 1 i'sprovided at the center thereofwith an enlargement or boss 8 into which is threaded the end of a bolt 9 upon which is rotatably mounted the member 10 for holding the columns or stacks of articles in operative position and for moving the same into alignment successively with opening 2 for movement, therethrough, the bolt being held and fixed in position by means of a nut 11 screwedu onthe end thereof.

The constructiono member 10 will now be described, referring more particularly to 6 Figs. 1, 9 to 13 and 19 to 22. Four pieces of wire are bent and arranged as shown in Fig. 9, to form two oppositely directed circular portions 12, the adjacent ends 13 thereof being bent outwardly at right angles to each other and connected by a portion 14: at aforty-five degree angle thereto, the opposite ends 15, of portions 1 2.being bent transverse to the plane thereof, as shown in Figsyll and 12, to provide guides for holding the columns or stacks of articles in operative' position and for moving the same w th. respect to base 1; The ends 13 are then twisted together, as shown in Fig. 10, and circular portions 12 secured together at their points of'contact 16 by any suitable means such as spot-welding. The bottom of member 10 is constructed in a manner similar to that in which the top thereof is constructed, the ends 15 of circular portions 12', however, being continued around in the plane thereof to complete the circle and being then twisted together, as shown in Fig. 11, to-provide stops for the purpose.

hereinafter described. Circular portions 12 'provide bearings for receiving bolt 9 and permitting free rotation thereon of member 10. A plug 19 having a shank 20 and a head 21 provided with grooves 22 is fitted into a cylindrical tube 23 and fixed against rotary movement witlu respect thereto by means of lugs 24 struck inwardly therefrom and arranged to fit into grooves 22, as more clearly shown in Figs.-1 and 13, the plug being provided with 'a central opening 25 through which bolt 9 loosely passes. A coil spring 26 is fitted upon shank 20 of plug 19, as shown in Fig. 1, the end 27 of the spring being bent and passed through a suitable opening 28 in head 21 of the plug, as shown, whereby this end of the spring is fixed to member 10. A second plug 29 having a head 30 and a shank 31 provided with grooves 32 is fitted into the lower end of tube 23, shank 31 entering the lower end portion of spring 26, as shown, the end 33 of the spring being inserted into a suitable opening 34 in head 30 of lug 29 to fix this end of the spring and p ug against movement I to the bolt by means of a pin 36 passing through the latter and into grooves 32. Tube 23, plugs 19 and 29 and spring 26 are assembled as above described and then inserted as a unit between rommets or bearings l8 ofmember 10, t e tube and parts associated therewith being held in assembled position and against rotary movement with respect to member 10 by means of lugs 37 formed integrally with the tube at each end thereof and bent over circular portions 12 and 12 and upon the respective ends 13 and 13 thereof. Before tube 23 is placed in position, however, the end of bolt 9 is passed through the upper grommet or bear1ng'18 and pin 36 then passed through the bolt. The end of the bolt is then inserted into the upper end of tube 23 and the latter placed and secured in position as explained above. The end of bolt 9 is then passed through plugs 19 and 29 and threaded into base 1, opening 25 in plug 19 being large enough to permit pin 36 to pass through the same.

points, namely, by tube 23 and ends 15, and

that upon rotation of member about thebe placed under tension, as plug 19 is fixed of column to to the member for rotation therewith and plug 29 fixed tobolt 9 and held thereby against rotation by means of pin 36, as explained above. When spring 26 is under the proper tension and one of the columns of cups in alignment with opening 2 and in operativerelation withthe dispensing device 4, member 10 is held against rotation under the action of the spring by means now about to be described.

Referring more particularly to' Figs. 1, 6 and. 13, an escapement or hook member 38 comprising a resilient or spring shank :39 having one end thereof vbent back upon and at right angles to itself to form a cam portion 40-and an abutment or stop '41, and the other end thereof, secured to an L'-shaped bracket 42 by any suitable meanssuch as rivets 43, is held 1n position by the bracket in such manner that the abutment 41 is disposed in the path of movement of ends or stops 15' of member 10 and arranged to engage the stops and hold the column of cups associated therewith in alignment with opening 2 for; movement therethrough and prevent rotation of member 10 under the action of spring 26. The bracket 42 may be secured to base 1 by means .of screws 44.

From the foregoing it will be obvious that when the dispensin device 4 has ejected a sufficient number 0 cups from the bottom permit downward movement thereof through opening 2 until the top cup in the column passes below the plane of portions 12, that outward movement of the free end or abutment 41 of member 38 from engagement with stop 15 will permit rotation of member 10 in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 13, under the action of spring 26, and thereby effect movement of the next succeeding column 46 with respect to base 1 until the stop 15 associated with column 46 strikes abutment 41 which has previously been returned to its normal position in the "path of movement of this stop by the spring action of shank 39 of member 38. The nextsucceeding column 46,

height of one cup,the bottom cup nesting with the top cup of what yet remains of the preceding column 45. By outward movement, therefore, of abutment 41 from en- (Upon umn 45,therefore, the top cup thereof will be moyed out of engagement with portion gagement with stops 15' as the tops of the respective columns 45, 46 and'47 pass below the plane of portions 12, rotation of mom ber 10 under the action of'spring 26. is permittcd to efiect movement of the columns into alignment, successively, with opening 2 for movement therethrough upon opera-' tion of the dlspensmg device 4. The abut ment 41 of member 38, of course, is not moved out of engagement with stop 15 associated with column 48, since this=is the last column. The means or mel'nber 49'for auto-' matically moving abut-ment 41 out of engagement with stops 15' when the tops of' the respective columns 45, 46 and 47 'pass below the plane of porti0ns12,will now be described, referring more particularly to Fig. 4.

The member 49 may comprise a frame formed from a single piece of wire and havin an end portion 50, bottom converging side members 51 having the ends 52 thereof twisted together and spread outwardly to form top side members 53' twisted, as shown, to form eyelets 54 and then bent downwardly at substantially right angles to members 53 to form braces 55 having the lower ends 56 thereof bent around members 51 and spot welded thereto, the plane of members 53 being at an acute angle to the plane of members 51, and a suitable weight 57 arranged upon the twisted ends 52 and between members 51 and 53. The weight 57 may be an apertured disc of heavymetal such as lead, the ends of the wire forming theframe of member 49 being inserted through the aperture before being spread outwardly to form members 53. A member 49 is placed at the top of each column 45, 46 and 47 as shown in Figs. 1 and 13, the ends 15 passing loosei y through eyelets 5'4 which rest upon the rims or edges of the top cu s, and members 51 and portions 50 extending into these cups, portions 50 engaging the inside of the cups to prevent downward pivotal movement of members 49, under the action .of Weight 57, about eyelets 54 as centers or pivots- As the dispensing device 4 takes the cups from the bottom of column 45 to permit the same to pass downwardly through opening 2, member 49 associated with this column will slide downwardly therewith along the ends or wires 15 until eyelets 54 engage and rest upon stops 17, whereby further downward movement of member 49 is prevented.

urther downward movement of col- 50 of member 49 when the rim of this cup passes below portion 50. Member 49 will then be permitted to swing downwardly, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, under the action of weight 57 and about eyelets 54 as pivot-s,

portion 50 of the member engaging the free end or a r-utment 41 of the escapement 38 and moving the same outwardly out of engagementwith stop 15. Rotation of member under .the action of spring 26 will then be permitted until the stop assoiFig. 2, the member 49 associated with this column will be permitted to swing downwardly under the action of weight 57 and release escapement 38. Rotation of member 10 under the action of spring 26 will then be permitted to effect movement ofthe next succeeding column 47 into alignment with opening 2.

The member 49 associated with column 48 will operate in a like manner to coact with escapement 38 and thuseffect automatic movement of column 48 into alignment with opening 2.

Ends 56 are so arranged that they engage portions 12 when escapement 38 has been released and thusprevent further movement of member 49 and hold the latter in the position shown in Fig. 2, so that no part thereof will be permitted to enter opening 2 to prevent rotation .of member 10 with respect to base 1.

When the device is filled to capacity, the combined frictional resistances between base 1 and the bottom cups of columns 46, 47 and 48 might offer an appreciable resistance to rotation of member 10 byspring 26. For the purpose of decreasing this frictional resistance to a minimum, therefore, roller bearings 58 may be mounted upon base 1 in any suitable manner, andarranged as shown in- Fig. 14 for the columns to roll upon as they are moved by member 10; I It is thereby possible to employ a lighter-spring 26 for effecting rotation of member 10, this, in

. turn, permitting disengagement more readily of escapement 38 from the stops 15 by means of members 49. Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, it will be noted that from the time of disengagement of portion50 of member 49 with the top cup of the column to the time of engagement of portion 50 with abutment 41 of escapement 38, weight 57 drops through an appreciable distance and thus stores up a certain amount of kinetic energy which is utilized in forcing the free end or abutment 41 of escapcmcnt 38 outwardly outof engagement with stop 15''.

In refilling the device, casing 7 is removed and member 10 rotated in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 13, back to its original position, stops 15- engaging cam portion 40 of the escapement during this movement and thus springing the same 'outwardl whereby the stops are permitted to pass the latter. When the device is adapted to hold.

cups 45, 46, 47 and 48 are then placed in position from the top of member 10, members 49 swung back to their respective operative positions, as shown in Figs. 1 and 13,

and easing 7 replaced. I

In many instances member 10 may be rotated by hand to move the columns of cups into alignment, successively, with opening 2,

in which case members 49, escapement 38, spring 26 and plugs 19 and 29 are omitted and casing 7 loosely fitted-into flange 6 of base 1 for rotation with respect thereto and provided with lugs 60 arranged on either side of one of the stops 15, as shown in Figs. 7 and S. Member 10 and easing 7 are there by connected for rotation together so that upon rotation of the latter with respect to base 1 the columns of cups may be moved into alignment, successively, w1th opening 2 for movement therethrough.

Other means than casing 7, of course, may be employed for effecting rotation of member 10 by hand. In the modification shown in Figs. 16, 17 and 18, the lower end of bolt 9 passes loosely through a central opening in boss 8 of base 1 and extends slightly below the same, member 10'being fixed to bolt 9' forrotation therewith'by means of a suitable pin 61 passing through. the'bolt and tube 23 of member 10. An actuating lever 62 having an enlarged, split end 63 is provided with an opening receiving the lower end of bolt 9' is fixed thereto by means of a set screw 64 which firmly clamps the' end of the bolt between. the split parts of end 63. The free end 64 of lever 62 may be'bent upwardly against flange 6 of the' base andoutwardly, as shown in- Fig,v 16.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that by grasping the handleor'end 64 of lever 62, the operator may rotate lever 62 and member 10fixed for rotation therewith to thereby effect movement of the columns of cups intoalignment, successively, with opening 2 for movement therethrough. Lugs 65 may be provided at the outer, lower edge of base 1 and arranged as shown in Fig. 18

to receive lever 62 when the same reaches a is slightly resilient so that it may spring downwardly and ride over lugs 65 when the operator rotates the lever to move the next column of cups into position for movet em through opening 2.

, It will therefore be seen that a device has beenprovided which may be used in connection with dispensing devices for paper cups suchas are disclosed in the above Pat-- ents Nos. 1,260,432 and 1,081,508, whereby a plurality of columns of the cups may be placed into the machine and moved into operative relation, successively, with the dispensing device either automatically or inanually, and that devices made in accordance with the present invention are adapted for attachment to dispensing devices of the above type which are inuse at the present time by simply removing the glass casings thereof and substituting'for these casings the new devices, as shown in Fig. 1.

The device shown and described is adapted for dispensing paper cups, but of course devices made in accordance with the present invention may be used in other connections and are of much broader adaptation. These devices may be used for dispensing a great variety of articles, and it is in no way intended to limit the invention to the particular embodiment shown in the drawings.

' Any changes necessary to adapt the device for dispensing articles other than paper cups will be obvious to those skilled in the art. For instance, member 10, instead of being made substantially entirely of wire, maybe made of other material such as sheet metal, as suggested in my copending application Serial No. 671,470 tiled October 29,1923.

Furthermore, various changes in the size, shape and arrangement of the parts may be" made without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the claims.

The invention claimed is: i

1. A dispensing device of the character described comprising a base adapted. to support a plurality of columns of stacked articles and provided with an opening through which said columns may pass, a member associated with said basefor movement with respect thereto and adapted to hold said columns in operative position and to effect movement thereof into alignment successively with said opening for move ment therethrough, a spring tending to move said member with respect to said base, means adapted and arranged to prevent movement of saidmember under the action of said spring and to hold said member in various predetermined positions to permit eachof said columns to pass through said opening, and means associated with one of said columns and adapted and arranged, to effect movement of said first-mentioned means to inoperative position when 'said column has passed through said opening to permit movement of said member under the action of said spring whereby thei next succeeding column is moved into alignment with said opening for movement there through.

2. In combination with a device for dispensing articles comprising a casing for receiving one end of a column of said articles, means associated w th said casing for re- .moving articles from said end, and manuall y-opcrable means for actuating said lastmentioned means, of a base communicating with said casing and titted thereto in telescopic relation with respect to the same, said base being adapted to support a second column for movement successively into operative association with said device, and means associated with saidhase for holding said second column in operative position and effecting said movement thereof;

3. In mechanism of the character described, a device for receiving one end of a column of stacked articles and removing the latter therefrom, means for supporting a plurality of said columns for operativeassociation with said device, and means for automatically moving one of said columns into 0 erative association with said device following'such association with the latter of apreceding'column, said. last-mentioned means including an element supported by said preceding column and. movable therewith during only part of the time of its operative association with said device, and means engageable withsaid element for holding the same against such movement during another part of said time.

4. In mechanism of the character described, a device for receiving one end of a column of stacked articles and removing the latter therefrom, means for supporting a plurality of said columns for operative association with said device, a member as-.

sociated with said means for movement with respect thereto and provided with a plurality of stops, a spring acting to cause said movement of said member, said member being adapted to su port and effect movement of a plurality 0 said columns into operative relation successively with said device upon said movement of said member, a latch adapted and arranged when in operative position to coact with said stops .to hold said member against movement and elements supported by said columns and adapted for engagement with said latch to move the latter to inoperative position whereby said columns are automatically moved into operative association successively with said device.

5. A dispensing device of the character described comprising a base adapted to support a plurality ofcolumns of stacked articles and p ovided with an opening through which said columns may pass, a member associated with said base for movement'with respect thereto and adapted to hold said columns in operative position and to effect movement thereof into alignment successively with said opening for movement therethrough, means operable to support and provide for removal from the column aligned with said opening of the articles comprising the latter, and means operable independently of said last-named means for eifecting movementof said member with respect to said base. 7 a

6. A dispensing device comprising a supporting base for a plurality of columns of stacked articles, means common to said columns for removing and dispensing the arti-,

cles comprising the same in a direction axially thereof, and means providing for movefmentof said columns into operative relation successively withsaid first-mentioned means and being operable to hold the respective columns in such relation until substantially the entire number of articles comprising any one column have been dispensed before the next succeeding column is moved into such relation.

7. Adispensing devicecomprising supporting means for a plurality of columns of stacked articles, means common to said columns for removing therefrom the articles comprising the same, means for imparting movement to said columns for successive operative association with said article-removing means, and means operable independently of said article-removing means for ac,

tuating said second-mentioned means, said actuating means including and being controlled by a weighted memberengaging the column operatively associated with saidarticle-removing means and being adaptedfto perform its controllingfunction when a predetermined number of articles have been removed from said column.

' '8. In combination, a member movably supported and provided with a plurality of article-receiving compartments, means tend-. lng normally to impart movement, to said member, means controlling the action of said means, and an element associated with said member for pivotal movement .and operable upon such-movement to govern saidcontrolling means, saidelement being constrained against such movement by the contents of one of said compartments whereby displacement of said contents permits of such pivotal movement of said element.

9. In dispensing apparatus, a device operable to support a column of stacked articles and to permit of removal axially of said column of the article at one end thereof while supporting the remaining articles for subsequent removal in like manner upon repeated operatlon .of said device, and

association successively with said device.

ments, means tending normally to impart movement to said member, latching means engageable with said stop to hold said member against movement, and means engageable with the contents of one of said'compartments and operable upon displacement of said contents to release said latching means.

11. In apparatus of the character described, escapement means operable to support a column of nested cupsand to provide for removal of the latter individually from one end of said column, means disposed for movement: with respect to said escapement means and operable upon such movement to provide for successive association with the latter of a second column, means for imparting such movement to said movable means, and means for controllingsaid last-named means.

12. In apparatus of. the character described, escapement means operable to support a column of nested cups and to effect .effect operation of said supporting'means.

13. In apparatus of the character described, escapement means operable to sup port a column of nested cups and to provide for removal of the latter. individually from one end of said column, means supported for rotary movement and operable to support a second column and to provide for operative association ofthe same successively with said escapement means upon such movement thereof, spring means for imparting such movement to said last-named means, and means for controlling such ac.- tion of said spring means. I w

14. In apparatus for handling articles, base member, means supported for rotary movement with respect to said base and operable to support a plurality of columns of stacked articles in upright position with respect to said base, and rollers supported intermediate said base and the adjacent end of said 'means for rotary movement about axes converging substantially to' a point substantially on the axis of rotation of said means.

In witness whereofI hereto aifix my signature.

HAROLD D. GREGORY. 

